BOSTnet STAR Awards!

Do you know someone in the Out-of-School Time field worthy of recognition?

Individuals and OST programs are doing an exemplary job of providing much needed services and support to our youth in the out-of-school time hours during the school year and in the summer. Ideally, good work is recognized on a regular basis but here's an opportunity to publicly honor your colleagues at a statewide event!

The STAR Awards have traditionally been given to professionals who have shown commitment to workforce development in OST.  This year's BOSTnet All Means All Conference will play host to a revival of the out-of-school time field's STAR Awards, a popular recognition begun by the former Massachusetts School Age Coalition (MSAC), and carried on by the BOSTnet Statewide Advisory Committee.  Help us recognize and celebrate members of our field from across the state by submitting a nomination! 

** CLICK HERE TO NOMINATE YOUR STAR!! **

BOSTnet STAR Award Categories:

Disability Inclusion STAR - for an individual OR program that has demonstrated extraordinary commitment to serving youth of ALL abilities! Whether it be through important facility upgrades to make accessibility easier for all; courage and innovation in trying a new approach to working with a diverse learning population; or an overall effort to go above and beyond to make Inclusion a priority in their program!

Emerging STAR - for a young individual demonstrating strong leadership in their role, leveraging the strengths of their organization -or the staff- to create change. This Emerging STAR award will be given to a young professional who has increased the impact of their out-of-school time program in the community!

Community Partnership STAR - for an individual OR program that has demonstrated an exemplary connection with families, schools and the community! Given to an individual or organization that has increased the capability of their program to better serve the youth and families who utilize its services. This individual or program has intentionally worked with other organizations and community collaborations to further their program's mission. Better service delivery has been achieved by increasing involvement with partnerships at many levels in the community. These partnerships can include school relationships with teachers or principals, city officials such as the mayor or police, etc. 

MSAC Legacy STAR (Lifetime Achievement) - Given to an individual who has demonstrated leadership through their integrity, tenure and track record of sustained effort to contribute significantly to the mission of their organization and/or advancing the needs of the out-of-school time field. This individual stands out for their long-term commitment to children, families and their community!

DEADLINE EXTENDED! Nomination Forms are due by July 30th, 2010! 

Finalists will be chosen by members of the BOSTnet Statewide Advisory Board, which is made up of members of the Build the Out-of-School Time Network (BOSTnet) membership base.

Nominees do not have to be members of Build the Out-of-School Time Network. Anyone making a difference in the OST field, whether an organization or individual throughout Massachusetts, is eligible (please note that two of the four categories apply to individuals only).

For more information contact Monica Zgola at zgola@bostnet.org or call 617-720-1290 x232.

All Means All - 2009 - Thank YOU!

BOSTnet would like to thank the more than 200 attendees, workshop presenters, speakers and others who made this year's All Means All Conference a huge success. In particular, we would like to thank Dan Lebowitz of the Center for the Study of Sport in Society (Northeastern University) and Charlie Washburn of VSA arts of Massachusetts for getting the day started. Both had powerful messages about the connection between inclusion and human rights and the power of imagination and creativity to foster learning in ALL children and youth. As Charlie clearly pointed out in the beginning of his remarks, "you (OST staff) have the most important job in the world." 

From our evaluations and conversations with attendees it is clear that most see this conference as a key professional development opportunity for OST educators and youth workers. They liked the expanded workshop offerings and find value in learning direct, hands-on strategies to engage children and youth of all different abilities in meaningful learning and enrichment. This year's workshops include training on serving the needs of children and youth with both developmental and physical disabilities, literacy, work programs for at-risk youth, mental health issues from a youth development perspective, staff safety, and others. Significantly, we handed out a large number of certificates of attendance which certainly indicates a high need for professional development credit for staff of licensed providers. Well over 90 percent of attendees reported coming away with a deeper understanding of inclusion issues and new strategies to improve their program's practices.

Networking is also a key value provided by this conference and, in fact, most attendees indicated that they want more explicit opportunities to connect with each other and share perspectives on their work. We've always felt that this conference provided an opportunity to engage local and state level policymakers who set the afterschool and OST agenda for the state. Last year we heard directly from the co-chairs of the Massachusetts Commission on Afterschool and Out-of-School Time-Senator Thomas McGee and Representative Marie St. Fleur. This year we organized a lunchtime panel discussion with Secretary of Education Paul Reville, DESE Commissioner Mitchell Chester and DEEC Commissioner Sherri Killins, moderated by Dr. Gil Noam of the Program for Education Afterschool and Resiliency. Josh Kraft, the Nicholas President and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston opened our lunch program and introduced our first speaker, Education Secretary Paul Reville.

In his remarks, Secretary Reville outlined a primary goal of his office to create a more equitable education system where all children are elevated and supported in a way that fosters learning and school success. He even linked that goal to the name of our conference - All Means All. Noting that the K-12 system cannot do it alone, Reville spoke at length about the need for innovative partners in our communities and schools to create "mutually reinforcing systems for children". Reville challenged us to find commonalities between the various dichotomies that pervade our education system--charter vs. district, ELA immersion vs. bilingual instruction, expanded learning time vs. afterschool, in order to connect to a broader shared mission. Despite this opportunity, Reville did acknowledge the lack of equity in the system and pledged to continue to work to make schools more transparent and open to community involvement. Commissioner Killins echoed these sentiments, noting that there is wide variation in how collaborations work across the state and that they are often most dependent upon building strong relationships at the local level.

The panel discussion touched upon many areas, including how we assess children in schools, recovery act funding opportunities through "Race to the Top," and the Innovation Grant program (i3), and professional development. One area of discussion seems ripe for more intentional work - collaborative professional development for teachers, OST educators and youth workers. There seems to be widespread agreement that we must continue to advance our knowledge through more collaborative efforts that find synergies between the teaching profession and youth development. One major announcement to this end was Governor Patrick's recent creation of six Readiness Centers across the state to develop more effective and accessible professional development opportunities for teachers. As Reville, noted, there are opportunities here to integrate training and technical assistance to all adults who work with youth across a variety of developmental settings. Please see the Advocacy Section of the October 2009 BUZZ to read more about these centers.

Finally, many thanks to our workshop providers who help make this conference successful year after year. A great group of City Year volunteers helped us with registration and room set-up and allowed us to focus on other work to ensure a smooth start to the day. We also could not make this event possible without the continued support of our sponsors and benefactors-The Dammann Boston Fund, The Center for the Study of Sport in Society, The Barr Foundation, The Boston Foundation, The Carl & Ruth Shapiro Family Foundation, The Croll Foundation, and The State Street Foundation.

We hope you will all join us again next year for the 6th Annual All Means All Conference!

Roundtable Series 2009/ 2010

BOSTnet Leadership Roundtables give leaders in the out-of-school time (OST) field an opportunity to learn from each other, share resources and ideas, and learn what really works for OST program providers and youth. For over fourteen years, BOSTnet's Leadership Roundtables have been providing quality support to OST programs in Boston and statewide, and we are back by popular demand to serve the North Shore!

BOSTnet Roundtables provide organizations or practitioners:

• Over 20 hours of affordable professional development
• Networking opportunities
• Communications
• Visibility as a collaborator
• BOSTnet toolkits
• DEEC Hours
• United Way requirements 

Boston Series

• Thursday, January 28th, 2010  9:30am-12:30pm
  Location: Boston Public Library, Boston, MA
  Topic: Everything you wanted to know about talking to youth but were afraid to ASK. This experiential workshop will focus on building communication skills and strategies for engaging in effective conversations for those who serve youth.
  Resources:
  ASK Support Assessment Tool (Be Safe & BARCC)
  Resource Guide

• Thursday, March 25th, 2010 10am-12pm
  Location: Boston Public Library, Boston, MA
  Topic: We Are ALL Learners! Inclusive Strategies that Focus on the Whole Child. Restoring Justice in Schools and Out-of-School Time: a Model for Implementing Restorative Discipline. The Out of Harm's Way program staff from DELTAS (Department of Extended Learning Time, Afterschool & Services) will introduce us to the Restorative Justice approach, which is based on the belief that the people best placed to resolve a conflict or a problem are the people directly involved, and that imposed solutions are less effective, less educative and possibly less likely to be honored.
  Resources:
  Promoting Inclusion of Children and Youth with Disabilities: Tips and Tools for Afterschool Professionals 
  Behavior and Emotional Support Assessment Tool
  March 25th Restorative Justice Training
  The Curley School Code of Discipline Plan 
  Implementation of Restorative Principles and Practices at the Curley Feb 2010 Report

North Shore Series

• Thursday, October 29th, 2009 10am-12pm
  Location: Greater Lynn YMCA, 20 Neptune Blvd, Lynn, MA 01902 
  Topic: Information about upcoming Department of Early Education & Care (EEC) regulation changes - presented by EEC; School Age Child Care Certificate Program - presentation by North Shore Community College

• Thursday, February 11th, 2010  10am-12pm
  Location: Peabody-Lynnfield YMCA, Peabody, MA
  Topic: Promoting Program Quality through Family Engagement
  Resources:
  BOSTnet Engaging Families Toolkit
  Mi Vida, Mi Viaje (Girls Inc. of Lynn)
  Tips from Panel

• Thursday, April 15th, 2010  10am-12pm
  Location: Community Teamwork, Inc. Lowell, MA
  Topic: Accreditation for Out-of-School Time Programs

More information to follow about the Roundtables and how to RSVP for each, so please keep watch for future email announcements from BOSTnet and check our website frequently at www.bostnet.org.

In 2008-2009 Build the Out-of-School Time Network (BOSTnet) Roundtables convened over 500 Out-of-School professionals in and around Boston.  BOSTnet is expanding our work throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to new locations and is looking for your support to do so.  Using in results from our evaluations and feedback from the field, we will offer a series of original work covering topics that are key issues of the field such as behavior management, family engagement, inclusion of diverse learners, and Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) projects.  We are currently identifying partnerships with organizations who see BOSTnet Roundtables as a vehicle for their own organization's professional development needs as well as contribution to building the field.  Please consider your organization as a partner in the Leadership Roundtables.

We are looking for commitments for Boston, the North Shore, the South Shore, and Worcester this summer to launch our Autumn series.  Please contact BOSTnet at info@bostnet.org to learn more about how to sponsor this series.  To see highlights of past roundtables and a final year end review visit our blog at http://bostnet.blogspot.com/2009/04/bostnet-roundtable-year-in-review.html or www.youtube.com/bostnet.

2008/2009 BOSTnet Leadership Roundtable Series Review